Construction of vessels



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R. A. ROBERTS.

CONSTRUCTION OPVES'SELS. No. 573,297. Patented'De'o. 1-5, 1896.

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(Noi-Model.) i Y R. A. EGBERTS.-

GONSTRUGTIGN' 01' VESSELS.' No. 573,297.' l, Patented 1360.15, 1896.

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Mimimrmlnlwr I muuu UNITED STATES PATENT OEErcE.

RICHARD A. ROBERTS, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

CONSTRUCTION oF vEssELs.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters PatentNo. 573,297, dated December 15, 1896. Application filed .Tune 18,1896. lSerial No. 595.971. (No model.)

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Be it known that I, RICHARD A. ROBERTS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Oonstructionof Vessels; and l do declare the following,` to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to thevaccompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The object of this invention is to increase the speed of boats or vessels, and especially vessels of light draft and considerable length of beam; and this object is attained by means of self-filling cavities or air-chambers which are situated at the bottom of the vessel and by air-channels which run from one end of the vessel to the other and are adapted to receive and hold for a brief period of time bodies of air which enter the forward end of said air-channels as the vessel moves in her course. The air in the cavities or chambers and in the channels increases the buoyancy of the craft, and consequently decreases the surface which is exposed to the water.` The surface of the boat which is incontact with the water being thus reduced, the adhesion between the boat and water, as wel-l as the friction between these `two bodies when the boat is in'motion, is also reduced. Furthermore, the area of contact between the boat and the water is still further lessened by the fact that portions which would otherwise be in contact with the water are in contact with bodies of air which rest upon the water. The advantages flowing from the facts just related will be apparent when it is remembered that one of the great obstacles to high speed in boats is the great force of adhesion which exists between water and any body which it will wet; that the friction between water and the body of a vessel is a great factor in retarding the motion of the boat, and that in proportion as the area of surface which is in contact with the water is increased the adhesion and friction aforesaid are magnified.

A vessel in motion carries with her a thin film of water,between which and the bottom of the vessel there is adhesion which is stronger than the cohesion which exists between the film of water and themain body of water in,

which the vessel is floating, that is to say, the adhesion between the molecules of water and the adhesion between the molecules of a solid which it Wets is stronger than the cohesion which exists between the molecules of the water itself. The planes of clearage are therefore not coincident with those of the bottom of the vessel, and the iilm of water which the vessel carries is therefore as thick as the distance between theil` respective planes. It is therefore true that anything which lessens the area of contact between the vessel and the water, or which places in contact with the water a body such as air, between which and the water there is less adhesion and .friction than there is between the water and bottom of the vessel itself, must in a greater or lesser degree remove some of the natural obstacles to the vessels progress.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a plan view of the bottom of a vessel, showing the several keels, the corrugations, and the du cts constituting means for directing air to the chambers. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sec* tional view taken on the line oc of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a view in cross-section taken on line y y of Figi, both of which latter views illustrate the construction and position of the airchambers. Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7, and S, are enlarged detail views of certain modifications of my invention. Figs. 9 and 10 illustrate my invention as usedin a particular kind of boat herein described.

A is the main central keel of the vessel, on either side of which are arranged the keels B, extending parallel therewith and at uniform distances therefrom, the spaces between all the keels varying according to the size of the vessel. As shown in Fig. l, five keels are used, but more or-less may be employed in accordance with different sizes and other conditions of vessels to which they are applied. ln all cases, however, these keels should preferably begin above the water-line, and should be of sufficient depth, that is from the vessels bottom to their extreme edges, to serve the purposes for which they are intended.

Corrugations C are arranged transversely of the bottom of the vessel extending between the outside keels the extreme width of the bottom. They may be of any form and dept-h desired. I make no claim to any particular forni, but broadly claim these corrugations, because the advantages of any specific construction thereof can only be determined by experimenting with different classes of vessels under different extrinsic conditions. These corrugations are more specially adapted, however, to smaller boats which never attain a higher speed than six miles an hour, because the corrugations are not only sufficient for the purpose but occupy no considerable space. They may though, as shown, be used in vessels of larger size in conjunction with the airchambers, which I shall now proceed to describe. rFliese air-chambers D are arranged between the bottom proper, E, of the vessel and the false bottom F thereof, which is supported and strengthened by the keels A and D. In Fig. 2 partitions Il are shown, which divide the channels formed by the keels A and B between t-he bottom Eand false bottom F into uniform chambers or compartments D. These compartments have exterior communication through the ducts or passages K, which may be arranged at an incline, Fig. et, or may merely amount to perforations in a very thin false bottom O, Fig. 5. The compartments are otherwise air-tight. Between each pair of ducts in a single groove the false bottom, if not corrugated, may be curved convexly, as shown in Fig. 5, so that air directed through said grooves or channels may more easily enter ducts K.

The chambers or compartments are constructed, as above stated, as wide as the space between each pair of keels, and the ducts comm unicatin g therewith may be just as wide and preferably so, but in Figs. l and 2 at L these ducts are illustrated as extending longitudinally and as not being so wide as the space between the keels, and they communicate with the chamber M, which is preferably longer than chambers D.

In Figs. 7 and S but a single air-chamber is used, extending from dotted line N' sternward and having exterior colnmunication through its only entrance, a longitudinal duct N. L-shaped portions L are arranged between the keels, so as to form sides for the duct N. Secured to each side of the downwardly-extending flanges of these L-shaped portions situated contiguous to the duct is the false bottom F, having transverse corrugations. Under the vessels bow, there being here no air-cha1nber or its duct, the corrugations may extend the entire distance be tween heels. I do not wish to limit myself to the employment conjointly of the longitudinal duct and corrugations. For the auxiliary corrugations arranged on each side of the longitudinal duct, as above described, transverse ducts may be substituted, if desired. Attention is called to the fact that the duet, as shown in this Fig. 8, may be so constructed that there is a considerable space between its mouth and the air-chamber with which it communicates. In larger vessels difficulty would be encountered in cleaning the inside of the chambers, which would soon become affected in various ways by the action of the waterand its deposits. By the arrangement above referred to the duct is of such depth that the air allowed to enter may not onlyl be contained by the chamber but may also partly iill this duct, so as to prevent water from entering the chamber.

It is apparent that chambers instead of corrugations are better adapted for larger vessels, which ean more readily afford the sacritice of some space for a contrivanee of this character than can small boats, and which usually move at a speed which overcomes the purpose when merely eorrugations are employed. Hence chambers instead of corrugations are more applicable to larger vessels.

Itis obvious that the heels which I have described as extending above the water-line at the bowr would. not only serve to break the impulse of the waves by dividing them, and hence lessen their retarding force against the vessel at this point, but while the vessel is moving at a comparatively high rate of speed or while in rough waters these kecls forming channels would be especially advantageous toward accomplishing the object of this invention-viz., conducting air which is introduced and forced into the channels by the water at the bow and beneath the vessels bottom to be detained there by the means provided and for the purposes described.

In Fig, 6 is illustrated a means whereby the bottom f of the chambers maybe detachably arranged in their respective grooves. A centrally-situated transverse flange h, corresponding to the partition I-I before described, is made integral with the bottom f. On opposite sides of the grooves and on the inner faces of the keels at a convenient distance from the bottom of the vessel brackets o are provided, to which the bottom f may be screwed or by any other means detachably secured.

I have shown in Figs. 9 and 10 a particular type of boat to which my invention is applicable and which is especially adaptable either as a bathing-boat or an individual life-raft. The longitudinal heels A and B are in this case/arranged in pairs, the said pairs being braced by and secured to a piece of board E or other light material of suitable size. The individual keels of each pair of keels are braced by its false bottom F', being corrugated and having ducts P communicating with chambers C. The upper surface of the board E may be concave in cross-section, as shown in Fig. 10, wherein the body of the per son swimming on the raft is intended to lie, and the lower surface of the said board may be corrugated or not, as desired. Braces a are intended to be employed to strengthen the several parts of the boat.

Having thus fully described my invention,

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what I claim,- and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A vessel provided with a plurality of heels, air-chambers situated between the said heels and having contracted downwardlyopening mouths, substantially as described.

2. A vessel provided with a plurality of heels, air-chambers situated between said heels and having contracted downwardlyopening mouths, the bottoms of the said airchambers being provided with transverse corrugations, siiibstantially as shown and described.

3. A vessel provided with a plurality of heels, air-channels between the heels, and aircavities havin g contracted downwardly-opening mouths situated between the heels, the channels constituting means for communication between the external air and the aircavities, substantially as described.

4. Avessel having self-{illing air-chambers and corrugations arranged along its bottom, a plurality of heels, and air-channels formed by said heels andconstituting a means for communication between the chambers and corrugations and the external air at the vessels bow, substantially as described.

5. A vessel having a plurality of heels, T- shaped pieces situated between the heels, channels formed by said heels and the T- shaped pieces, air-chambers situated between the vessels bottom, -the heels and the T- ter-line at the vessels bow, substantially as described.

6. A vessel having a plurality of heels forming air-channels, detachable T-shaped pieces situated between the heels and forming therewith and with the vessels bottom cavities having contracted mouths communicating with the channels, substantially asshown and described.

7. A vessel having with its bottom E, a false bottom F with perforations, a plurality of heels supporting the false bottom and forming therewith an air channel or chann els having external communication above the waterline at the vessels bow, partitions situated between the bottom E and the false bottom Fand forming with the same and the heels air-chambers, said channels and the perforations constituting means for conducting air to the chambers from above the water-line at the bow of the vessel, substantially .as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

RICHARD A. ROBERTS.

Witnesses:

CHARLES T. AUSTIN, V. A. EDWARDS. 

